DDMA allows Durga Puja & Ramlila festivities but with strict restrictions
New Delhi: Ahead of Durga Puja, Ramlila and other festivities, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority on Sunday issued strict guidelines for large festive congregations and gatherings, which prohibit the functioning of fairs, melas, food stalls, rallies, exhibitions and processions till October 31 except for events specifically permitted by the concerned district magistrate and the district DCP.
The DDMA had placed restrictions on gatherings and large congregations through an order passed on September 30 which has been withdrawn "only to the extent of allowing gatherings/congregations for the celebration of upcoming festivals till 31s October, 2020 only," as mentioned in the new order passed on Sunday.
All event organisers will now have to obtain special permission from the concerned DM for organising festival events, well in advance, besides obtaining permission from all other authorities concerned as per the rules, the order stated.
Such permissions will be jointly granted by the DM and the District DCP concerned which will be on the basis of a joint inspection report submitted by the concerned Executive Magistrate, the concerned SHO and the Licensing Inspector of Municipal Corporation. The approval will be given if the inspection is found satisfactory and the site is suitable for the event and meets all the norms, the order specified.
The capacity of each event site will be based on the allotted area and whether social distancing norms can be followed. In closed spaces, 50 percent of the hall capacity will be allowed with a ceiling of 200 people and the same is applicable for events in open spaces. Event organisers will have to keep a separate entry and exit at each venue and only sitting on chairs with social distancing is allowed.
The DM will appoint a Nodal Officer for each event or venue who will ensure strict compliance with the guidelines. "Every Organiser/Organising Committee/Samiti shall be responsible for conducting videography/video-recording of the event/programme from starting to end on a daily basis and a soft copy of the unedited video recording in pen-drive and a certificate, certifying that no violation of the SOPs/ Guidelines issued by Govt. of India and Govt. of NCT of Delhi
has taken place, shall be submitted to Nodal officers of
respective event sites, within 3 hours of closing of event/programme of each day," the order stated.
In case of any violation of guidelines then the Nodal officer will have to report it to the DM, District DCP and the permission granted for conducting the event will be withdrawn.
The DM will also have to make arrangements for sample videography of the permitted event site to ensure adherence to social distancing and other relevant norms. A certificate, jointly signed by the DM and the District DCP will have to be submitted to the Chief Secretary of Delhi on a daily basis which will mention if guidelines are adhered to or not.
